In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Add flour and whisk constantly it will look lumpy until you add milk.

Pour in 1 cup of milk gradually (whisking constantly).

Make sure all the lumps are gone and slowly add rest of the milk. Stir 1 cup sugar and crushed gum mastic in and whisk until everything is incorporated and the mixture starts to thick. Take off the heat, whisk for about 10 minutes.

It is simply a meaty dish served with/on a creamy eggplant puree. This is a kind of main course which comes from the cuisine of Ottoman Empire to our present. Dish consists of stewed beef/lamb and eggplant puree blended with béchamel sauce which is a white sauce composed of butter, flour, milk and creamy cheese.

About the history of the dish, some rumors floating around. But eventually, we’re sure the dish was served to The sultan once and he liked it. So, since then it has been called ‘sultan’s delight’ means sultan liked it:)

Ingredients

For the stew

1 lb stew beef (preferably sirloin steak)

1 tbsp tomato paste

1 tbsp red pepper paste

4 tbsp canola oil

salt and pepper

1 tsp thyme

One clove garlic, minced

1/2 cup water

for the eggplant puree

2 lb eggplant

3 tbsp white flour

1/4 cup butter

1/2 cup grated mozzarella

1 and 1/2 cups milk

juice of 1/4 lemon

salt and pepper

Direction

Cut the beef into the strips. In a medium skillet, heat the oil and sauté beef strips on low heat. Cook until the meat absorbs the juice back. Add tomato & pepper paste and stir for another couple of times. Add ½ cup hot water. Let simmer until meat is tender. Add more water if needed.

Meanwhile, wash and prick the eggplants with a fork on at least two sides.

Place eggplants on gas burner or under broiler, turning them frequently until eggplant is collapsed and skin is charred. You can also bake them for an hour or until they are soft, but charred always tastes better.

Let cool and then peel and mash eggplants with the back of a fork in a bowl and mix with lemon juice.

To make white sauce, heat butter in a pot. Add flour and stir constantly to make a roux on low heat.

Add milk and whisk that quick not to make flour bubbles. Whisk to make the mixture smooth. Simmer for 2 minutes. Add eggplant puree and mix well. Season with salt and black pepper to taste. Add cheese. Mix well. Simmer a minute more.

On a platter, spread eggplant puree and place meat on top of eggplant puree. Serve hot.

one of the main dishes from Ottoman cuisine that I love to prepare. But I still have concerns about the original recipe. I wonder if it was the same then, or it was different from this recipe in a few ways!

Ingredients

200g lamb, cut into small cubes

1 large tomato, peeled and diced

1 green pepper (Cubenalla), diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 Italian eggplant, peeled and diced

6 red pearl onions, halved

Salt

Red crushed pepper

2 tbsp butter

Preparation

In a medium pan, sauté meat in 2 tbsp butter until the meat release the juice and absorb it back. Add pearl onion and keep cooking. Stir in order first diced green pepper, red pepper, and then eggplant, and tomato in. Sauté that for about 10-15 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir to combine. Turn the heat off and serve hot with a kind of Pilaf you love.

Persian Pilaf is one of the dish from Ottoman Cuisine. History goes to period of Abdulhamid II.

The recipe had been found in the records of a dinner invitation. We liked it as family. I am sure you’ ll love it too.

Ingredients

1 cup jasmine rice

4 tbsp butter

3 tbsp pine nut

3 tbsp currant

200g beef cut in small cubes

1 and ½ cups beef broth

1 onion, chopped

½ tsp ground cardamom

½ tsp ground cinnamon

½ tsp ground clove

Salt

Directions

Soak rice in salty warm water for half an hour. Clean the stems of currant and soak tem in water as well.

In a medium pan, sauté beef cubes in 2 tbsp butter on medium high heat. Add chopped onion and sauté until meat absorb all the juice. Add 1 cup hot water and let simmer until tender for an hour on low heat.

When the meat is done, drain excessive broth and transfer beef and onion mixture to a shallow pot. Stir all spices, currants, and pine nuts in pot too. Add washed and drained rice in it and mix them well.

Boil 1 and ½ cups broth, mix 2 tbsp butter and salt in broth. Pour the broth mixture on rice and let it simmer on first medium heat until boiling then cook on low heat until rice absorb the broth.

Turn the heat off. Cover with double layer of paper towel and put the lid on it. let set 20 minutes to steam.

Ottoman style KeskulThis light dessert is based on milk and it is also translated to English as “almond pudding”. It was common in Ottoman Era Courts around Anatolia, according to most historical references; and currently widely known throughout Turkey as an indication of vertical acceptance by public culinary. It is mainly made of nuts and milk. The common version is made with almonds. Neverteless, historical Ottoman style Keskul has been prepared with pistachios as an elegant version. It takes only 5 minutes to prepare and another 25 minutes to cook. Thus, it falls in category of quick desserts.

Cook until bubbly and consistent. Stir sugar and coconut in. Boil a few minutes more while stirring. Take it off the stove. Pour into small serving bowls immediately. Let them cool to room temperature.

Sprinkle some ground pistachio, shredded coconut and /or sliced almonds on top. Chill them in the fridge with the tops covered. Serve Keskul cold.

Add enough canola oil to a deep frying pan. Heat oil over medium-high heat and fry the eggplants in two batches. Transfer immediately to a plate lined with paper towel to drain.

After drained, place eggplants in an oven dish and set aside. Preheat your oven to 350 F.

In a separate skillet, place 2 tbsp olive oil. Put minced garlic and cook over medium-high heat. Add diced onions and sauté until lightly browned. Add tomato paste, diced green peppers, diced tomatoes and chopped parsley one by one. Put a lid on it and cook over medium-high heat. When the tomatoes tender, sprinkle salt and pepper and turn the heat off.

With the help of two spoons, slit eggplants into two, leaving the tops and bottoms attached. Fill them with tomato mixture you cooked.

Arrange and place half a slice of green fried pepper on each eggplant. Bake 20 minutes. Serve warm.

In a medium pan, put olive oil over medium-high heat. Add bulgur and cook for a few minutes stirring occasionally. Add already boiled/cooked green lentils; stir to coat. (Lentils should be tender not mashed)

Add boiling water or chicken stock and salt. Cook covered until most of the liquid is absorbed. Continue simmering on low heat until liquid has evaporated and bulgur is tender, about 25 minutes. Place a paper towel on the surface, cover with a lid and set aside to steam for 15 minutes. Serve warm with plain yogurt.